The Louisiana Legislature convened in late March for its 2008 Regular Session. Several anti-gun bills have been introduced and referred to the House Administration of Criminal Justice Committee.

State Representative Cedric Richmond (D-New Orleans) has once again introduced a ban on semi-automatic firearms, this time it is House Bill 68. Although he has dubbed this bill the "Assault Weapons Protection Act", make no mistake - it "protects" nothing and bans guns, subjecting people who own banned guns to fines and imprisonment - with hard labor - for up to two years.

HB 68 would ban pump-actions as well as semi-automatics, and millions more firearms than the Clinton "assault weapons" ban of 1994-2004. His definition of "assault weapon" would include numerous autoloading and pump-action deer rifles, autoloading .22 rimfire rifles, some 19th century pistols, as well as many firearms with a "military-style appearance" used for self-defense, target shooting and hunting. He even preposterously makes the claim that these firearms are "equally as dangerous as machine guns and explosive devices." The bill goes on to ban firearm parts such as muzzle brakes, ported pistol barrels, and other commonplace firearm accessories, calling them "assault weapons conversion kits." Here is a list of just a few guns that his bill would ban:

Think this can't happen in Louisiana? Who would've believed that the New Orleans Police Department and other first responders to Hurricane Katrina would confiscate firearms from law-abiding citizens when they needed them the most? New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin (D) is on record, after a series of meetings with members of the New Orleans legislative delegation last week, as making this ban on so-called "assault weapons" - a ban on YOUR lawfully-owned firearms - a priority of his administration during this current legislative session. He has been quoted as saying he will work with the National Rifle Association to craft a "workable compromise." Rest assured, there will be NO compromise on your rights, whether you live in New Orleans or not.

Still think this can't happen in Louisiana? Mayor Nagin managed to get re-elected in spite of his and his cronies' flagrant disregard for hurricane victims' Second Amendment rights, not to mention his gross mismanagement of the disaster and subsequent bizarre comments over the past two years about the state of his own city. Stranger things could - and have - happened in the Sportsman's Paradise!

That's why we need you to take action immediately. HB 68 has been referred to the House Administration of Criminal Justice Committee.Many of the committee members are newly elected because of term-limits, and they have not had the opportunity to become "worn out" by State Representative Richmond's repeatedly unsuccessful attempts to infringe upon your rights. Which is why it is crucial that you make your opposition heard!

Another measure that attacks your Second Amendment rights in Louisiana, House Bill 75 by State Representative Austin Badon (D-New Orleans), an NRA-opposed "ballistic fingerprinting" bill that would require all handguns to be test-fired, prior to sale in Louisiana, for entry into a law-enforcement database. Ostensibly, the markings left on the bullet and cartridge case would aid law-enforcement in solving crimes. New York and Maryland - the only two states to adopt such legislation - have seen the systems become crime-solving failures and the Maryland State Police Forensic Sciences Division called for scrapping its system entirely.More recently the National Academy of Sciences released a report that concluded, “that a national reference database of ballistic images should not be established” because, among other things, “[T]he validity of the fundamental assumptions of uniqueness and reproducibility of firearms-related toolmarks has not yet been fully established.” In the past, State Representative Badon has been inclined to pursue true crime control measures supported by NRA. Please contact State Representative Badon at the Baton Rouge at (225) 342-6945and politely urge him to reconsider pursuing this ineffective solution to New Orleans' crime problem.

Please also contact the members of the House Administration of Criminal Justice Committee, listed below, where both HB 68 and HB 75 have been referred, and urge them to OPPOSE these egregious measures.Make your call TODAY and pass the word along to your family, friends and fellow gun owners!

Note: All State Representatives can be reached during the week in Baton Rouge at (225) 342-6945

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Established in 1975, the Institute for Legislative Action (ILA) is the "lobbying" arm of the National Rifle Association of America. ILA is responsible for preserving the right of all law-abiding individuals in the legislative, political, and legal arenas, to purchase, possess and use firearms for legitimate purposes as guaranteed by the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.